I lost my son Mark Bingham on 9/11.

He died in the crash of United Airlines Flight 93 in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. Mark and a group of fellow passengers stormed the cockpit, fought the hijackers, and prevented hate-filled terrorists from striking their intended target, the Capitol in Washington, D.C. Although Mark and the other passengers lost their lives that day, they likely saved many others.

As we approach the 15th anniversary of 9/11, there are two things we will never forget.

How wonderful and fragile life is.

How the healing spirit of unity and compassion brought our nation together in the days after the attacks.

We can’t bring our loved ones back. But perhaps together, as a nation, we can bring back the 9/11 spirit of unity and togetherness in observance of the 15th anniversary of 9/11 this year.

In remembrance of the thousands killed and injured on September 11, 2001, and on behalf of the many first responders, recovery workers, and military personnel who rose in service in response to the attacks, I am petitioning Hillary Clinton, Donald Trump, Jill Stein, Gary Johnson, and other candidates for political office, to voluntarily suspend their campaign activities for one day, on September 11, 2016.

Instead of running campaign ads and posting "tweets," I ask each of them, and other candidates running for office, to observe a "political moment of silence" for the day, pledging instead to dedicate time on 9/11 to helping others, and engaging in private moments of reflection and prayer, in the spirit of national unity and remembrance, and in observance of the federally recognized September 11 National Day of Service and Remembrance (911day.org).

Please sign my petition in support of this moratorium on political campaigning for 9/11. By doing so, you'll help bring honor to the thousands of 9/11 victims, and help rekindle at least for a day the simple truth that our differences are trivial compared to our common humanity.

Thank you,

Alice Hoagland, mother of Mark Bingham